Mobile telephones and mobile communication devices in general have become an essential tool in many people's daily lives. Being without the use of a mobile device due to the device being broken, stolen, left at home or lost can be a distressing experience. Subscriber's wishing to get a replacement phone have to report their existing phone as lost/stolen to their network operator and then wait for a replacement phone to be delivered. This process can take anywhere from days to many weeks depending on the country, leaving the phone owner without the use of a phone until a replacement can be sought.
In order to alleviate the problem, some network operators offer backup and restore solutions that allow the data on the mobile phone to be stored in an offline location thereby preventing data loss. Other potential solutions try to alleviate the problem further. For example, Mahaffey teaches a system and method to locate a lost device and secure the lost data. However, these solutions have shortcomings. For instance, they do not allow the subscriber to use a temporary device while continuing to be billed on his own account and using his normal mobile number until a replacement device is obtained.